Cape Palliser

I took a quick step over the delta

To take a closer look at the rocks

The waves barely brushed them

And my feet were dry

And the Pacific roared on...

There was a tugging underneath

I don't know how I perceived it

But I knew, I could feel

That I should keep my distance

And the Pacific roared on...

I imagined what might happen if I were swept away

So quick, so sharp, slammed about like a ragdoll

My lungs rammed to bursting with seawater, eyes netted in weed

And tiny fish laughing as they wriggled past

And the Pacific roared on...

I wanted to test myself

To climb on a rock and look down

See the pattern of it all

And let the monsters leap up and miss my toes

But the Pacific roared on...

Not two minutes had passed

And the rocks were surrounded

And I had to run backwards

On the coarse black sand

And the Pacific roared on...

I stopped for a breath

And my hand lighted upon some treasures

Empty skeletons, devoured by the land

Gleaming in gorgeous ocean hues

And the Pacific roared on...

Now escape was the goal

I retreated three metres further

And leapt back across the delta

And my feet were wet

And the Pacific roared on...

From the grassy tuft above

I said a fond goodbye

To the glittering cerulean waves

That taught my pulse to race again

That drove my heart to thump

And my lungs to heave

And my legs to weave again

I threw all this into the air

Laden with earnest intention

That it might be received

By anything that chanced to listen

And the Pacific?

The Pacific roared on...